1. Field Of The Invention
The present invention relates to the field of medical disposables, and in particular to holders for slides used for conveying samples of biological tissues or fluids for laboratory analysis. The use of slides for this purpose is widespread not only in the medical and biological fields, but also in chemical and related analytical and experimental problem.
2. Background Of The Invention
The use of specimen slides, typically consisting of thin rectangular sheets of glass, for the collection, packaging and storage of biological specimens has prompted the design and fabrication of small, inexpensive, disposable packets and holders of various types, designs and materials. These items are intended to protect the relatively fragile glass slide and to preserve the specimen smeared or deposited on the slide against contamination or physical damage. Such packaging allows the specimen slide to be handled, stored and transported in a convenient and dependable manner until the specimen is processed, in the laboratory or otherwise.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,147,042 granted to this applicant discloses an improved medical specimen slide holder which facilitates and expedites the handling of both the slide and the package by all personnel involved in the specimen collection and specimen analysis procedures, while at the same time enhancing the level of protection afforded to both the specimen and the slide. The patented holder has a tray portion and a cover portion, a ridge defining a slide receiving recess in the tray portion, the cover portion being configured and dimensioned to make a friction fit with the ridge in a closed condition of the holder, and has a window in at least one of the portions for exposing to view an identification bearing portion of the slide in the closed condition of the slide holder. The window allows easy reading of the identifying indicia or markings typically written at one end of the slide by the person taking the sample to reference the biological sample to a particular patient or source. It therefore becomes unnecessary to open the holder package in order to view these identifying markings, which expedites the physical handling of the package and reduces the possibility of damage, contamination or loss of the slide and specimen.
The entire slide holder may be molded of a single sheet of thermoplastic material for low cost large volume production and for ease of use and handling.
The specimen slide holder of U.S. Pat. No. 5,147,042 is intended for single use only, after which it should be discarded. The slide holder is likely to become contaminated with microorganisms present in the environment and also with material from the specimen on the slide. Thus, if the slide holder is reused, a subsequent specimen can become contaminated with material from a previous specimen or microorganisms accumulated on the slide holder, thus leading to an erroneous diagnosis and misleading laboratory test results. This is of course undesirable and potentially dangerous to patients, and is a result to be avoided insofar as possible.
What is needed therefore is a slide holder which can provide a clear, unambiguous and positive indication of prior usage to the physician who will therefore not be mislead into using a potentially contaminated slide holder. The indication of prior use should be such that it cannot be returned to an original condition indicative of an unused slide holder without great difficulty.
While the slide holder disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,147,042 works well for its intended purpose, it can be further improved to supply a clearly visible, unambiguous and positive indication or flag of prior usage of the slide holder at no significant increase in cost of the disposable slide holder, thereby to prevent unintentional reuse of a used and possibly contaminated slide holder.
This improvement is accomplished by providing a panel which in an original condition of the slide holder is integral with the holder and closes the window. The panel is attached to the slide holder by a tear line consisting of relatively weak connecting links or equivalent means which are preferentially rupturable when manual force is applied to the panel, allowing easy detachment and removal of the panel and consequent opening of the window.
As the panel is initially integrally part of the sheet of material from which the slide holder is molded, it adds no additional cost or complexity to the manufacturing process or to the product. The improvement simply involves providing a weakened connection between the panel and the rest of the slide holder, so as to retain the panel in the window, rather than simply stamping out and discarding the panel during original manufacture of the slide holder.
The panel readily breaks away from the slide holder when pushed, as by a finger pressing on the panel, either from the inside or outside of the slide holder. Typically, the physician taking the specimen would push out the panel from the inside of the slide holder, while the slide holder is still open for receiving the specimen slide. Once the panel is broken out, the open window serves as a positive indication of prior use of the holder, and alerts all subsequent persons coming into possession of the slide holder to the fact of its prior usage. The open window provides all the benefits already summarized above, allowing easy inspection of the identification indicia on the slide without having to open the slide holder which might subject the slide to the risk of falling and breakage, or smearing and contamination of the specimen.
These and other features and advantages of the present invention will be better understood by reference to the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments and the attached drawings.